1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a vibration damper, in particular a shock absorbing strut. The vibration damper can have an essentially U-shaped decompression stop boundary bracket, which bracket is fastened to a container tube, and in the event of a rebound of a vehicle axle, the bracket can come into contact with a chassis-side support surface. The bracket can include a base plate with side walls, and the entire bracket can be formed by bending a single component.
2. Background Information
WO 91/06438 describes a shock absorbing strut which, on its container tube, has a decompression stop boundary bracket which comes into contact with a chassis-side support surface when the vehicle axle has reached its maximum rebound position. The decompression stop boundary bracket includes a base plate and a reinforcement plate as well as a radial guide plate, whereby the base plate is welded to the reinforcement plate and to the guide plate. In accordance with this realization, a spot welding process is used between the base plate and the guide plate, while an inert gas arc welding process is employed to lay down the seam between the reinforcement plate and the base plate.
German Laid Open Patent Application No. 43 21 036 also describes a decompression stop boundary bracket, in which the reinforcement plate is connected by means of seams laid down by inert gas arc welding. As a result of the use of this technology, undesirable weld spatters can occur which are difficult to remove due to the configuration of the component. Even when the component is realized in one piece, there are weld seams which have to be reworked.
An additional problem relates to the positioning of the decompression stop boundary bracket in relation to the vibration damper. When there is a specified rebound travel, the decompression stop boundary bracket must be supported over a specified portion, either on the vehicle axle or on the vehicle body. It is therefore particularly important to maintain the position of the decompression stop boundary bracket. In the realizations described in German Laid Open Patent Application No. 43 21 036, the positioning function is performed by a guide part which is realized in the form of a bent component. Even small differences in the bending radius can have a significant effect on the position of the decompression stop boundary bracket. For example, if the radius of the guide part is too small, the decompression stop boundary bracket is displaced, forming a gap relative to the container tube, so that it is essentially impossible to maintain the specified position.